Telecommunications (Collection of Numbering Charges) Determination 2025

Annual charge. This is the charge imposed under subsection 468(1) of the Telecommunications Act 1997 in respect of a numbering right. The Determination does not define the charge; it merely governs when it is due and what happens if it is late. The concept is essential because without an annual charge there is no late payment penalty. The chargeable person is the holder of a numbering right allocated by the ACMA.

Late payment penalty. This is a statutory penalty that accrues daily on any amount of annual charge that remains unpaid after the due date. The penalty is calculated by multiplying the daily rate (derived from either 20 per cent per annum or the previous financial year average GIC rate, whichever is lower) by the sum of unpaid annual charge plus any unpaid penalty from earlier days. This compounding effect is a significant incentive to pay on time, as the debt grows geometrically.

General interest charge (GIC) rate. The GIC rate is determined under section 8AAD of the Taxation Administration Act 1953. The Determination uses a four-quarter average of GIC rates from the most recently completed financial year. That average is rounded to two decimal places. The ACMA publishes the applicable rate, but the rate is a known published figure from the ATO. The floor mechanism means that if the economy experiences very low interest rates, the penalty rate remains at 20 per cent unless the previous year’s average GIC rate drops below that threshold. In periods of high GIC rates (above 20 per cent), the penalty is capped at 20 per cent, which is a benefit to the payer.

Remission. The ACMA has the power to reduce or eliminate a late payment penalty. Remission can occur on the ACMA’s own initiative or by application. The grounds are tightly defined but include a broad “fair and reasonable” catch-all. The ACMA cannot remit arbitrarily; it must be satisfied of one of the four circumstances. An application must be in writing, specify reasons, be made within 120 days of the due date, and be on an approved form if one exists. The ACMA must give written reasons for its decision.

Attribution of payments. Section 10 requires that any payment that is not specifically attributed by the payer or the ACMA must be credited first to the annual charge and only to the late payment penalty once the annual charge is fully extinguished. This means a partial payment will reduce the principal debt but not the penalty, and penalty will continue to accrue on the remaining charge.

Transitional arrangements. The 2025 Determination explicitly preserves the 2014 Determination for pre-commencement debts. Annual charges that fell due before the commencement of this instrument but remain unpaid are governed by the old regime for both penalty calculation and remission applications. This is important for entities that have outstanding 2024 charge debts: they cannot rely on the more favourable remission or rate rules of the 2025 Determination.

Previous financial year average GIC rate. This is defined in Schedule 1 as the average of the quarterly averages of GIC rates from the most recently ended financial year. The calculation uses four quarters and rounds to two decimal places. This rate is used as the alternative penalty rate if it falls below 20 per cent. Because it is a backward-looking annual average, it provides some stability but lags current market rates.

The Determination directly affects any person (usually a carrier or carriage service provider) who holds a numbering right granted under the Telecommunications Act 1997 and who is liable to pay an annual charge in respect of that right. Numbering rights are allocated by the ACMA and are essential for operating telecommunications networks and services. The affected persons are typically telecommunications companies, internet service providers, mobile network operators, and any entity that has been allocated numbers for its own use or for resale. The Determination does not impose the charge itself, so the primary population of affected persons is those already identified under the Act and the relevant numbering plan. Indirectly, the Determination also affects the ACMA, which must issue invoices, calculate penalties, process attribution of payments, decide remission applications, and manage transitional cases. The ACMA’s decisions on remission are subject to internal reconsideration and then review by the Administrative Review Tribunal, so the tribunal and potentially the Federal Court may be involved in disputes. The Determination also affects the Commonwealth because late payment penalties are payable to the Commonwealth, providing a revenue stream beyond the underlying charge. For businesses, the compliance burden includes monitoring invoice dates, ensuring payment by the later of 15 June or 30 days from invoice, and tracking the applicable penalty rate (which may change year to year as the GIC rate fluctuates). For small providers or those with tight cash flow, the compounding penalty and the 120-day limitation for remission applications may create financial pressure. The attribution rule means that if a payer cannot pay the full amount, any part payment will not reduce the penalty accrual; it will only reduce the principal until that principal is zero. This could lead to a debt spiral if a provider is late and makes only partial payments. The transitional provisions protect those with pre-existing debts under the old determination from having to adapt to new rules mid-stream, but they also mean that a provider with a 2024 overdue charge cannot benefit from the 20 per cent cap if the old determination had a different penalty structure. (The 2014 Determination is not reproduced here, but the 2025 instrument refers to it, so practitioners must locate the old instrument for any pre-2025 debts.)

Duty to pay annual charge by the due date. Section 7 imposes a due date that is the later of 15 June of the charge year or 30 days from the date of the ACMA’s invoice. This gives a provider a minimum of 30 days from invoice, but no earlier than 15 June. Providers must monitor their invoice receipt and calendar accordingly. The due date is a strict deadline; failure to pay triggers the penalty automatically, without any grace period.

Right to apply for remission of late payment penalty. Section 11(2) gives a person the right to apply to the ACMA for remission of all or part of a late payment penalty. The application must be in writing, specify reasons, be made within 120 days of the due date, and use any form approved by the ACMA. This is a window of about four months. If the deadline is missed, the ACMA may still remit on its own initiative under section 11(1), but the person loses the right to compel consideration via application.

ACMA’s duty to consider remission. The ACMA may remit on its own initiative or on application. When it receives an application, it must make a decision and give written notice of that decision and the reasons. The decision is subject to internal reconsideration (sections 555, 558, 559 of the Act) and then merits review by the Administrative Review Tribunal (section 562). The ACMA’s discretion is not unfettered: it can only remit if satisfied of one of four grounds (beyond the person’s control, impracticable to recover, financial hardship, or fair and reasonable). This sets a legal standard that can be tested on review.

Right to seek review. A person dissatisfied with a remission decision can first ask the ACMA to reconsider, and then apply to the Administrative Review Tribunal. The determination’s note specifically references these rights. A decision not to remit, or a partial remission, is reviewable.

Attribution of payments. A payer does not have a right to direct how a payment is credited unless they expressly attribute it. Section 10 states that if neither the person nor the ACMA specifies an attribution, the payment goes first to annual charge and then to penalty. This is a default rule; a payer can avoid it by explicitly stating in writing that a payment is for penalty only, for example. But the practical effect is that a partial payment will not stop penalty from accruing on the remaining charge.

Duty to apply for remission in time. The 120 day limit is a strict time bar. It runs from the due date, not from the date of a penalty notice. Providers should track this date carefully if they intend to seek remission.

Duty to use approved form. If the ACMA has approved a form and published it on its website, the application must be on that form. This adds a procedural compliance step.

The primary penalty under this Determination is the late payment penalty calculated under Part 3. It is not a fixed dollar fine but a daily accruing amount that compounds. The daily rate is either 20 per cent per annum divided by 365 (or the relevant daily fraction) or the previous financial year average GIC rate per annum if that is lower. Because the penalty is applied to the sum of unpaid annual charge and unpaid penalty from prior days, the effective interest rate is compounding daily. This can escalate quickly. For example, if the annual charge is $10,000 and the penalty rate is 20 per cent, the daily rate is approximately 0.0548 per cent. After 30 days, the penalty would be about $164 on the principal alone, but because it compounds, the total debt grows faster. Enforcement does not involve court action initially; the penalty accrues automatically by operation of the instrument. However, if the person does not pay, the ACMA may take recovery action under other provisions of the Act or general law. The instrument does not create new enforcement powers; it only sets the penalty calculation. The Commonwealth can likely sue for the debt. Section 12 provides that entering judgment does not stop the penalty from continuing to accrue, but judgment interest reduces the penalty so that the total does not exceed what would have been owed without the judgment. This prevents double recovery. The remission power is a form of enforcement discretion: the ACMA can reduce or eliminate penalties, but only on the specified grounds. This creates an incentive for providers to apply for remission promptly and to document their circumstances. The ACMA may also remit on its own initiative if it identifies that recovery is impractical or that hardship exists. The 120 day limit for applications is strict, and the ACMA is not obliged to consider late applications, though it could still act on its own initiative. The penalty is not criminal; there is no fine or imprisonment. It is a civil debt owed to the Commonwealth. The determination does not specify interest on unpaid judgments beyond the reduction rule in section 12. The ACMA’s decisions on remission are administrative, and the right to merits review ensures a check on arbitrary refusal. However, the process requires the applicant to bear the cost of applying and possibly seeking tribunal review.

The Determination is made under the Telecommunications Act 1997, specifically subsections 468(3) and (4). It must be read in conjunction with that Act, particularly section 468 which imposes the annual charge, and Part 5 of Schedule 4 which deals with reviews of certain decisions. The ACMA’s general enforcement and information gathering powers under the Act (such as section 556 to request further information) apply to remission applications. The Determination explicitly references the Taxation Administration Act 1953 for the definition of the GIC rate, meaning changes to that rate under tax law automatically flow through to the penalty calculation, subject to the 20 per cent floor. The Acts Interpretation Act 1901 applies to references to Commonwealth Acts, and the Legislation Act 2003 governs the instrument as a legislative instrument. The instrument also interacts with the Administrative Review Tribunal Act (formerly the AAT Act); section 562 of the Telecommunications Act provides for review of decisions under this instrument by the Administrative Review Tribunal. The Determination references “previous determination,” which is the 2014 Determination that it repeals. For transitional cases, practitioners must consult the 2014 Determination, which may have different penalty rates or remission rules. The judgment interest interaction (section 12) cross-references general court processes. There is no direct interaction with state laws, as telecommunications numbering is a Commonwealth matter. However, the use of the term “person” means it can apply to natural persons or corporations, and the liability is joint and several for partnerships or unincorporated bodies. The instrument is silent on interaction with insolvency laws, but a late payment penalty would be an unsecured debt, and the ACMA’s ability to remit for financial hardship (section 11(4)(c)) may provide some relief for distressed entities. The instrument does not override the Privacy Act; the ACMA must handle personal information in accordance with that Act when processing remission applications. Practitioners should also note that the instrument is not a taxing instrument per se but an administrative determination; challenges to the underlying charge would need to be made under the Act, not this instrument.

This Determination is a new instrument that repeals and replaces the Telecommunications (Collection of Numbering Charges) Determination 2014 (Registration No. F2014L01783). The 2014 Determination was the predecessor that governed the same subject matter. The 2025 Determination is dated 21 March 2025 and commences the day after registration on the Federal Register of Legislation. There is no amending history for the 2025 Determination itself because it is a fresh instrument. The instrument is made under the same head of power as the 2014 Determination. The key textual changes from the 2014 Determination are not set out in this instrument, but the repeal indicates that the ACMA judged it necessary to remake the instrument, possibly to update penalty rates or procedural provisions. The transitional provisions (Part 6) are designed to preserve continuity: debts that fell due before commencement are dealt with under the old determination, and pending remission applications under the old determination continue under that instrument. This suggests that the 2025 Determination makes substantive changes to penalty calculation or remission grounds that should not apply retrospectively. The instrument itself does not include an explanatory statement or memorandum, so the precise reasons for the remake are not stated within the instrument. However, practitioners should be aware that the 2014 Determination may have had a different penalty rate (perhaps a fixed rate or a different floor mechanism). The 2025 Determination introduces the previous financial year average GIC rate as a floating alternative to 20 per cent, which may be new. The GIC rate changes quarterly, so the penalty rate year to year may vary. The 120 day application window and the detailed remission grounds appear to be retained from the 2014 Determination, but the specific wording of the grounds may have been refined. Without the old instrument, we cannot compare. The instrument is a standalone legislative instrument and will be amended only by future instruments. There is no amendment history within the instrument itself.

The instrument does not cite any litigation. It is a secondary legislative instrument and does not itself list cases. The underlying provisions of the Telecommunications Act 1997 have been the subject of judicial consideration, but nothing specific to collection of numbering charges is identified in this instrument. The remission power and the penalty calculation are administrative in nature and have likely been considered by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (now Administrative Review Tribunal) in individual cases, but no such cases are mentioned. Practitioners should be aware that decisions under the 2014 Determination may have been reviewed in the AAT, and those decisions may provide guidance on what constitutes “circumstances beyond the person’s control” or “financial hardship.” However, the instrument itself is silent on case law. Because the instrument is new (2025), there is no litigation history specific to it. The transitional provisions may preserve any ongoing tribunal matters under the 2014 Determination. The references to review rights (notes in section 11) indicate that the ACMA expects that its decisions may be challenged. The broad “fair and reasonable” ground in section 11(4)(d) gives the ACMA wide discretion, and such discretion often leads to litigation when it is exercised inconsistently. That said, the instrument does not create a cause of action; it only defines the calculation of penalty and the remission process. Disputes about the underlying annual charge are separate. In summary, there is no recorded litigation history within the instrument, but the possibility of tribunal review is built into the framework.

1. Compounding penalty. Section 8(2)(b) includes late payment penalty from previous days in the sum on which the daily penalty is calculated. This means the penalty grows not just on the principal but on itself. A debt that is left unpaid for many months can balloon. A provider might think a partial payment reduces the penalty, but under section 10, partial payments go first to the annual charge, so the penalty continues to accrue on the remaining charge at the full daily rate. Only when the annual charge is fully paid will further payments reduce the penalty.

2. 120 day limit for remission applications. This is strict. It runs from the due date, not from the date the penalty is notified or the date the provider becomes aware of the penalty. If a provider misses this window, they cannot apply; they must hope the ACMA remits on its own initiative, which is discretionary. The ACMA may be less likely to remit if the provider was dilatory.

3. Attribution trap. If a provider sends a payment and does not specify how it should be applied, section 10 forces it to the annual charge first. This is helpful in that it reduces the principal. But a provider who wants to stop penalty accrual as soon as possible cannot simply pay the penalty; they must pay the full charge or explicitly attribute the payment to penalty. The default rule may catch payers who do not read the instrument.

4. Transitional hangovers. If a provider has an annual charge that fell due before the 2025 Determination commenced but remains unpaid, the old 2014 Determination governs both the penalty calculation and any remission applications. This means the provider cannot benefit from any more favourable provisions in the 2025 Determination (such as a lower penalty rate or broader remission grounds). Practitioners must consult the old instrument for those debts.

5. GIC rate lag. The penalty rate uses the previous financial year average GIC rate, not the current rate. In a rapidly changing interest rate environment, the penalty rate may be higher or lower than current market rates. For example, if the RBA cuts rates sharply, the old year’s average GIC might still be high, but the penalty is capped at 20 per cent anyway. Conversely, if rates rise sharply, the previous year’s average could be lower than current rates, giving the provider a below-market penalty.

6. Judgment interest reduction is complex. Section 12 reduces the late payment penalty by the amount of judgment interest, but if the judgment debt includes other amounts, the reduction is proportional. Practitioners must calculate carefully to avoid double counting. The penalty continues to accrue after judgment, which is unusual.

7. Remission grounds are not automatic. Even if a provider’s late payment was due to circumstances beyond their control, the ACMA may still refuse remission if it is not satisfied. The burden is on the applicant to provide evidence. The ACMA can ask for further information under section 556 of the Act, and failure to respond may lead to refusal.

8. No grace period. The due date is hard. There is no statutory notice that a penalty is accruing. Providers must self-monitor.

9. Rounding rule. Section 13 rounds penalty amounts to the nearest cent. This is standard but can lead to small differences in cumulative calculations.

10. Forms. If the ACMA approves a form for remission applications, that form must be used. A provider who submits a free-form letter may be rejected. The instrument requires that the application be “using the form, if any, approved in writing by the ACMA.” Check the ACMA website before applying.

Step 1: Know your due date. The annual charge is due on the later of 15 June of the charge year or 30 days from the date of the ACMA’s invoice. Mark both dates on your calendar. Do not rely solely on the invoice date; if the invoice is issued early, the due date is still at least 15 June. If the invoice is late, the due date is 30 days from that invoice.

Step 2: Pay in full by the due date. The simplest way to avoid penalties is to pay the full amount on time. Use the payment methods specified by the ACMA. Obtain a receipt or confirmation. If you cannot pay the full amount, prioritise the annual charge over any other obligations, because the penalty compounds daily.

Step 3: If paying late, calculate the penalty yourself. The daily penalty rate is either 20 per cent per annum or the previous financial year average GIC rate (if less). Obtain the GIC rate from the ATO website for the relevant quarters. Calculate the daily rate as the annual rate divided by 365 (or 366 in a leap year). Multiply by the unpaid sum for each day. The sum includes previous unpaid penalty. Keep a running tally.

Step 4: Attribute payments correctly. When making a partial payment, state in writing how it should be applied. For example, specify that the payment is to reduce the annual charge first, or that it is for penalty only. If you do not specify, the ACMA will apply it to the annual charge first. If you want to stop penalty compounding, consider paying the full annual charge first.

Step 5: Apply for remission within 120 days if you have grounds. If circumstances beyond your control caused the late payment, or if recovering the penalty is impractical, or if full payment would cause financial hardship, or if it is fair and reasonable, apply in writing within 120 days after the due date. Use any approved form from the ACMA website. State your reasons clearly and provide supporting evidence. Keep a copy. If the ACMA requests further information, respond promptly.

Step 6: Monitor the applicable rate. Each year, the previous financial year average GIC rate may change. The rate is published by the ATO. Check before any late payment to know the daily penalty rate.

Step 7: For transitional debts. If you have an annual charge that fell due before the commencement of this instrument (i.e., before the later of the registration date of the instrument), consult the 2014 Determination for penalty calculation and remission. Do not apply the 2025 rules to those debts.

Step 8: Keep records. Retain invoices, payment records, correspondence, and any remission applications and decisions. If a dispute arises, you will need these for internal reconsideration or ART review.

Step 9: Seek review if remission is refused. If the ACMA refuses remission or grants partial remission, you have the right to ask for reconsideration and then apply to the Administrative Review Tribunal. Follow the procedures in the Telecommunications Act (sections 555, 558, 559, 562). The instrument notes these rights.

Step 10: Engage professional advice for complex cases. If the penalty amount is large, or if the facts involve judgment interest, multiple unpaid charges, or financial hardship, seek legal or accounting advice. The compounding and attribution rules can be counterintuitive.